Archives tagged: culture

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Back to School Shopping – and Selling

By Tim J. Smith, PhD August 11, 2011

According to Ypulse research, teens and college age men spend more per shopping trip than young women ($94 vs. $81)? That’s because guys want to get in and out of stores fast, and avoid shopping for awhile.

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Business Marketing Association 2011 Conference Unleashes Torrent of Content & Data Strategy

By David Dalka June 19, 2011

In the first week of June, the Business Marketing Association (BMA) held its annual B2B marketing conference in Chicago. The show over-delivered on its “Unleash” theme with a tidal wave of information about the changing nature of strategic marketing, business models, content and data strategy. Incoming BMA chairperson Al Maag, Chief Communications Officer of Avnet, had this to say about outgoing chairperson Gary Slack, “The annual conference is the jewel in our thought leadership BMA crown thanks to Gary Slack.

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The Starbucks logo wasn’t broke, but they fixed it anyway

By Tim J. Smith, PhD February 3, 2011

Chief executive Howard Schultz had the right idea about evolving the Starbucks logo, but his solution shows some of the hubris that got the company into trouble a few years ago.

The best brands are built upon a clear business strategy translated into a clear brand strategy. A brand strategy is consistently communicated to both internal and external audiences until it becomes the DNA of both employees and customers. Starbucks accomplished this mission, and then killed it.

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11 Lessons From Chick-fil-A on Entrepreneurship and Marketing Strategy

By David Dalka May 3, 2010

Recently I attended an event where Dan Cathy, President and Chief Operating Officer for Chick-fil-A in Chicago, speech. During the talk Dan evangelized the values of Chick-fil-A which include treating customers and employees with respect. Dan also stated that “We distinguish our product based on the value we provide rather than price.” Though I had never stepped foot in a Chick-fil-A restaurant, that comment tripped me off to the fact that I was about to experience a story about a unique entrepreneurial enterprise known as Chick-fil-A!

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Professorial Musings form the World of Marketing

By James T. Berger March 4, 2010

Recent issues of the New York Times and Wall Street Journal have been particularly rich in their commentaries of heretofore magnificent corporations who have fallen on hard times. In particular: Toyota, Palm and Blockbuster. ?

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Multicultural Marketing: A Misunderstood Concept and Untapped Business Strategy

By Tim J. Smith, PhD June 13, 2009

Newly released census figures show that the nation’s minority population has reached 102.5 million people, or one in three Americans. This burgeoning population—and the buying power it represents—makes effective multicultural marketing imperative for businesses to succeed. Yet many firms in our businesses community lack both a clear understanding of these diverse consumers and a disciplined approach to investing in and managing multicultural marketing. So, how can companies begin or improve multicultural initiatives?

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Success in Social Media

By J.D. Gershbein June 13, 2009

How is success in Social Media defined? Is it an input-equals-output argument? Can expenditures by companies in this area be justified? With so many individuals and corporations unable to attach logic to the concept, let alone the possibility of payoff, how does the use of the Social Media translate into black ink on the balance sheet? These are the questions imposed on businesses that seek to advance and flourish in the Internet Age

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If a Business Lets You “Pay What You Want”, Could It Survive?

By Tim J. Smith, PhD June 1, 2009

Come into most executives’ offices and say “I have a great promotional idea: Let’s let customers pay what they want. It will be great!” and your career there is all but over. Yet, experiments recently demonstrated that it was great, and more specifically, it was great for profits. How can this be?

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The Social Media Tsunami

By J.D. Gershbein May 1, 2009

Nobody saw this coming. A few hints were given that something was looming on the horizon, but not to this extent, to this fanfare. It struck suddenly and has pounded down on us with no quarter. In describing the impact of Social Media, the tsunami metaphor works—and mainstream business better be ready to accept it. Rather than being crushed under its immense force, individuals and companies must now learn how to surf—and very quickly. But what exactly triggered this tectonic shift in habit?

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The Case for Strategic Product Marketing

By Tim J. Smith, PhD August 1, 2007

The trouble with the outbound role of product marketing is that we have an identity crisis on our hands-we’re misunderstood, misguided, and…

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